Sycamore Volleyball Players Reflect On USA National Team Tryout Experience
Four Sycamores Share Reflections Of Competing
At U.S. Women’s National Volleyball Team Open Tryouts
TERRE HAUTE, IND. – Four members of the Indiana State volleyball team competed for a roster spot on the U.S. Women’s National Volleyball Team and the USA Women’s Senior A2 Teams during Open Tryouts Feb. 10-12 at the US Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.
Junior outside hitter Morgan Dall made her second trip to the Open Tryouts and was joined by junior middle blocker/opposite Shea Doran, sophomore outside hitter/libero Monique Morris, and sophomore setter Loni Mackinson.
Each of the Sycamores wrote about their experience at the elite competition.
MORGAN DALL – Outside Hitter
The USA Open tryouts were a great experience. Being coached by Coach Karch, a gold medal Olympian, was a really cool experience. He specifically helped me with my passing and explained certain concepts to me better. All of the coaches were really nice and created a very comfortable environment that was fun and easy to play in.
It was competitive but very relaxed at the same time. It was extremely interesting to play with so many talented players from schools across the country and see how we measured up against them.
Being able to sleep, walk, and eat where Olympians train daily was such an amazing feeling. We stayed in a dorm-like building with all of the other girls trying out, so we were able to meet lots of girls from all over.
Since this was my second year in a row going, I felt much more comfortable about it all. I feel like I got a lot more out of this trip this time around because the first time I was really nervous and I didn’t know as many players as I did this year. It was really cool going back and knowing the girls from last year.
I was so happy I was able to share this experience with my teammates and made memories alongside of them. This was an experience that I will never forget and loved every minute of it. I feel as if we are all taking a lot out of this trip.
We are bringing back some things to throw on the table for our entire team, not just ourselves. I feel that there are things we learned there that could benefit everyone and make us a stronger team. We need to work on our consistency on all levels. Once we are able to raise our constancy level, I think we’ll see an improvement in all of our stats and results.
SHEA DORAN – Opposite
Being able to go and represent Indiana State and our volleyball program in the National Women’s Open Tryout was an honor. Not only did I have an amazing time with my teammates and make memories that I will never forget, but I also learned so much. I learned a lot about passing and serving, and saw what techniques the Olympic team uses.
Playing side by side along some of the nations’ best players, wasn’t as intimidating as I thought it would be. I realized that these girls’ talent levels aren’t what sets them apart from us. Yes, they are very talented players, but what makes them so good is their consistency. They are able to make good, solid plays almost every time. Then when you put six of those consistent players on the court at the same time, that’s when they become a great team.
Training at the Olympic training center where actual Olympians train daily, was surreal. We even saw Michael Phelps on our last day in the cafeteria, which was a fun bonus.
Coming back from this experience, I feel like I’m bringing a lot back to my team. Not only am I a much more confident player, but I felt as if I saw what it takes in order for our team to improve and start competing with these teams. And it’s simpler than I thought. We all need to focus individually on getting more consistent at the simple things and then we can start to put it all together. I am so happy that I was able to go and experience this.
MONIQUE MORRIS – Libero
My experience in going to the USA tryouts was a memorable one. Going into it I was quite nervous and non-confident, considering the fact I was going to be going up against what I thought was some huge competition.
Going with Shea, Loni and Morgan definitely helped the matter though. It was comforting to have them there, even though I was going into the tryout as a libero, apart from all of them. Upon arrival, seeing the girls was another intimidating factor. Even just seeing the schools they came from, for instance almost the whole UCLA team was there.
Big schools from all over came to this tryout, and I knew all the libero’s had a lot more experience than I had. At the first session, after the first half hour, my nerves relaxed. I realized I was not as far behind in experience as I thought. No one in particular stood at to me as “amazing”. I came to the conclusion that all the teams that people look up to and watch on TV, aren’t what you think.
By Sunday, I realized that it wasn’t the individuals that made the team great; it was how the team worked together, even in specific just seeing team chemistry. At best, they were good players, who worked very well together. That’s what made their team great. We could be just the same.
Another thing to point out was the food. The food was not only healthy but extremely good. It helped me notice that athletes need to take care of their bodies and recognize what they eat. I felt throughout the whole weekend that I had a lot of energy, probably due to the fact that I was eating healthier.
LONI MACKINSON – Setter
Going to Colorado Springs this past weekend was definitely one of the best experiences of my life so far. It meant a lot to me to have the opportunity to play with the best of the best in the current volleyball world, and to have the chance to make a USA team. Not everyone is given the chance to make those teams, and I am so grateful that I could go and make this opportunity the best I was able to.
Volleyball is a big part of everyone’s life on our team, and to see how other girls in the volleyball world cope with such a big part of their life is awesome to see. It also meant a lot to me to be able to learn from Olympic coaches and understand their perspective on the game.
I certainly learned a lot about not only the game, but also myself and what I need to work on. I also learned a lot about team work and how our team could be 50 times better. Throughout the weekend, Karch Kiraly would continually say “Do what makes others around you better”. This quote, to me, is all pertaining to teamwork, which is what I believe our team could be better at. If the teamwork on our team was higher, I honestly believe our team could be unstoppable and compete for the top spot in our conference.
What makes me so confident in how good our team could be is by the evidence I saw this weekend. For example, everyone knows UCLA is the national champions, and so they are good when they are all on the same side of the net. When I came into tryouts the first day and everyone was randomly placed on different sides of the net, I was expecting the individual UCLA girls on my team to be amazingly good.
However, their performance was not as I expected it to be. Sure, they were hitting the balls extremely hard and having good placement, but when the UCLA girls are split up and forced to become an individual on the court again and find a new team identity, they look just like everyone else, but with a bit more consistency.
As soon as I realized this, I was thinking to myself how much better our team would be if we had more teamwork and were playing not to make ourselves look better, but our teammates instead. Coach Dahl continually tells us that teamwork is what is going to win games, but to actually see this theory in action and have first-hand evidence is what makes me believe it that much more.
I am truly, truly grateful and so thankful that I had this opportunity to make the USA team, and I feel like it gave me a different and more appropriate perspective of the game!
